


under this shared sky

by aukusti



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Holidays, Ice Skating, M/M, goro is kind of prickly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:21:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28332297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aukusti/pseuds/aukusti
Summary: “Have you ever been ice skating?”“I can’t say that I have, why do you ask?"“What if we went? Together.”Goro splutters, feathers sufficiently ruffled from the question alone.
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Amamiya Ren, Akechi Goro/Kurusu Akira, Akechi Goro/Persona 5 Protagonist
Kudos: 64





	under this shared sky

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rivermetimber](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rivermetimber/gifts).



> written for River @besaidisle on twitter for the Persona Secret Santa Exchange!  
> thanks for your patience, i hope i've done your prompt justice;;;;

“Have you ever been ice skating?”

Goro looks over from the book of crosswords he’s holding, pen poised in midair above a square he must’ve been about to fill out.

“I can’t say that I have,” Goro replies slowly, idle pen going to tap at his chin the way it tends to when he’s thinking. “Why do you ask?”

Akira times a one, two in his mind as he tends to before asking for something that will initially be met with rejection. “What if we went? Together.”

Goro splutters, feathers sufficiently ruffled from the question alone. “And subject myself to public humiliation by falling all over myself? No, thank you.”

“I’ll be there,” Akira responds immediately, sitting by Goro’s side and coaxing his book of crosswords out of his now vice grip. He'd be more upset if he realizes later that he’s ruined it. “I’m pretty good at it, you know. I can invite Ann too, if you want, since she’s the one who more or less taught me how to skate.”

It's silent, and Akira can practically see the gears turning in his mind, analyzing every scenario and probably cataloging the worst. He's gearing up for a second round of convincing when Goro blinks, turns to him, and says, “Okay.”

“Wait,” Akira says, because that’s not what he’s initially expecting at all, “really? As in, ‘okay’ okay?”

“Yes, as in ‘okay’ okay.” Goro purses his lips, pushing a strand of hair behind his ears that Akira doesn’t stop watching for a minute. “I would, however, appreciate it if you didn’t invite Ann. That's one less person to bear witness to my upcoming string of failures.”

Akira rolls his eyes, unable to help himself. “You’ll be fine, I swear. Let's get dressed now so we can have some time in the rink without the hordes that’ll come in later tonight.”

“Wait.” There’s alarm in Goro’s tone. “Now? Right now?”

Outside, the sky is overcast, but not dark enough to stop Akira in his mission. “Yeah, now. I don’t want to give you time to talk yourself out of this.”

“You’re insufferable,” Goro mumbles, standing up and stretching his arms high over his head. Akira forces himself to tear his eyes away from the skin that peeks out from under his sweater. If he focused for too long, they wouldn’t even make it out the door.

“Dress warm,” Goro calls behind him as he walks into the room. “If you catch a cold, I’ll kill you.”

Akira can only laugh, sliding open a drawer filled with both their clothes. “Been there, done that.”

They're out of the house in twenty minutes, about seven of those spent with Akira trying to help Goro open a new concealer he had just bought. He dresses warm, one of Goro’s scarves bundled nicely around his neck; it's on the colder side today.

“I know I agreed to this, but where are we going?”

“Oh, just,” Akira waves his hand vaguely, “you know.”

“I don’t,” Goro says flatly. “It’s why I asked.”

“Look, we’re getting to the station now,” Akira quips.

They're only on the train for some fifteen minutes. “Where to now?” Goro asks, tapping his foot lightly against the pavement.”

Akira walks straight ahead, eyes peeled for a sign. “I’m pretty sure it’s this way.”

“Hm,” is all Goro says, falling into step next to him.

It’s another few minutes before Akira goes, “Oh! Here!” and Goro takes a good look at what he’s gotten himself into.

The building itself is huge, and even as Akira beams he can feel Goro take a sharp breath next to him. “There’s probably enough ice in there for me to fall on daily.”

“We can come here every day if that’s what you want,” Akira offers. He laughs when Goro scoffs, nudging his shoulder with his own. “Come on, it won’t be too bad. Let's go in.”

They enter, and Akira watches as Goro squints against the bright lighting. “This is terrible.”

“You don’t even have your skates on.” They stand in a short queue of two other groups, waiting to get their tickets to go inside. “You can complain when we get those.”

True to his word, Goro only speaks again as they approach the skate rental counter. “If I fall, I’m leaving.”

“You won’t,” Akira replies breezily. A skating rink employee asks for the next available guests, and he motions to the counter. “I’m pretty sure your skate might be about half a size bigger than mine.”

Frazzled as he may be, Goro is surprised to find that he is, in fact, the exact ice skate size Akira had predicted for him. “How’d you know that?” he asks grumpily, carrying clunky black skates with his right hand to the bench next to the help counter.

“Oh, you know.” He’s wearing his usual smile. “I promise you’ll like this.”

“And if I don’t?” Goro asks, nose turned up to the side, if only to be contrary (something they both know).

Shrugging, Akira begins to unlace his boots to put his own skates on. “We’ll figure that part out when we get there. Let me know if you need help with your skates.”

“Shit,” Akira hears as he snaps the last safety lock into place on the side. He glances up to find Goro struggling to close his own. “I request your assistance, if you’d be so kind.”

He hums, scooting closer to him to close the clasps. They snap shut loudly, and Goro lets out a loud sigh. “Thank you.”

The rink isn’t all that full—it surprises him, actually, considering every time he’s come he’s always been in close contact with skaters that were flying past him easily.

Akira’s always been lucky though, even when he wasn’t, and he doesn’t mistake this as anything else. He stands, close enough to hold the rink’s side rail to keep his balance before he gets on the ice. “You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be,” Goro says, standing up precariously. Akira reaches out a hand and Goro grabs it with more force than he has in a while.

Akira steps onto the ice first, slowly as to give Goro time to process what to do by watching him. When he’s fully on it, he turns, still holding the sides of it for now. “Your turn.”

He’s stiff, and it works to his benefit as he slowly steps onto the ice, instantly holding onto Akira’s arm with one hand and the side of the rink with the other.

Akira mentally cheers. “The worst is over, so let’s start trying to move now, okay?”

“You’re going to give me a heart attack.” He lets go of Akira’s arm, testing his balance in this unfound territory.

“Okay, so you’re just gonna—” Akira pushes off the edge, gliding one foot in a smooth right motion, the other to the left. When he turns to look at Goro, it reminds him of the way his face looks when he studies for a final exam. “Good?”

“Again,” Goro says. Akira obliges, skating forward some more before turning to look at him like before. “Okay. Get back here, please.”

He skates up next to him, and Goro instantly gets back to holding back his arm. “I’m going to try that now,” he says slowly. “If I fall, I'm going home.”

“Yes, dear,” he concedes. He knows Goro has hard boundaries at times, and as much as he liked to test them, he did know when enough might be enough.

“Okay,” he repeats. “I’ll... do that now.”

Watching him push off the wall, Akira is relieved Goro doesn’t fall. They glide together slowly, testing the proverbial waters.

“You’re doing really good,” Akira says, surprise coloring his voice. The memory of him falling face first onto the ice when he had first tried this lingers not too far behind.

Goro grumbles something that Akira is sure are words, even if he can’t make them out over the steady sound of their skates hitting the ground in unison.

As they round the corner, Akira asks, “Want to try going around the whole rink?”

Goro squeezes his arm in a way that only hurts momentarily before he loosens his grip again, nodding wordlessly.

So they do, and Goro remains upright the whole time. “Wow, your balance is better than I thought it’d be.”

He scoffs. “Please. I needed to be as a child.”

Akira chooses not to asks what that means right now, focusing on not getting too ahead of the children that were clearly breaking in new ice skates right in front of them. “Want to go again?”

“Wait,” Goro says, eyebrows furrowed slightly. He tugs him to the right, and they pause at the edge of the rink, holding onto it once more. “Is that it? Do you just skate in circles?”

“Well, no.” Akira reaches his hand out to hold Goro’s, cold skin to cold skin. “But you just started, and I don’t want to stress you out too much. Want to go home for the day?”

He suddenly looks a lot wearier than he previously had been, as if he’d been deflated on hearing that one question alone. “I’d love to.”

On the trek back home, Goro is more pliant than he expects, going as far as to rest his head on Akira’s shoulder on the train ride back to their apartment.

“So,” Akira says once they’re off the train, “how was that?”

“I need a hot meal,” Goro says in response.

It doesn’t faze him at all, this bluntness he finds so endearing. Akira hums. “I can make us something when we get home?”

Goro nods, and they continue on.

Shedding all his layers by the door, Akira immediately steps into the kitchen to see what he has to work with. He peeks back into the genkan, finding Goro in the middle of unwinding his scarf and hanging it up. “How do you feel about omurice?”

“I can help,” he responds, shrugging off his coat and hanging it on top of his scarf.

“You can keep me company,” Akira suggests, which is how Goro ends up sitting on the countertop as he chops onions.

“It was interesting,” Goro finally starts, and Akira lays the onion he had been chopping on the cutting board to give him his full attention while he speaks. “Definitely more... monotone than I had been expecting.”

“Did you have fun?” he asks, moving to rinse his hands in the sink before standing in between Goro’s spread legs, hands resting on his knees.

“It will be.” His features are set firmly as he looks forward, the way they get when he’s set on something.

“Oh?” Akira tries to not let his voice get too high. “Does this mean I can give Ann the okay to buy you skates?”

Goro’s gaze snaps down to meet his. “What?” he says incredulously. “You didn’t even know if I’d enjoy it, and you were already planning that?”

“I mean.” Akira shrugs. “Trying to stay two steps ahead and whatnot. Also, the skates weren’t my idea.”

“My God.” Goro lets out a breathy laugh. “Okay. Yes. You have permission to tell Ann to get me those skates, because the ones I had on felt like they were about to cut into my flesh.”

“So dramatic,” Akira murmurs, craning his neck upwards as Goro leans down. They meet in a kiss, soft and cherry chapstick flavored. When they part, Akira feels like he’s glowing. “Thanks for trying something with me.”

“What haven’t we tried at this point,” Goro mumbles, swiping at his eyes for reasons he was sure to name as the onions.

“You’ll find out,” Akira says, smiling from head to toe as he steps out from between Goro’s legs to continue chopping onions at a steady pace.

Goro makes a _tch_ noise, hand reaching for Akira’s shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “You can’t help sounding ominous at all, can you.”

“Not even if I tried, babe,” Akira confirms.

Goro hums. Beyond the kitchen’s small window, snow has started to fall lightly.

They made it back home just in time.


End file.
